Friday, June 30, 2017

Mai Chai and A Crime of Passion Fruit



Ellie Alexander has brought us the Mai Chai and A Crime of Passion Fruit for this weeks installment of Drinks with Reads. Her novel is the latest in her popular Bakeshop Mysteries series. 

In this installment of the Bakeshop Mysteries, A Crime of Passion Fruit, Jules (pastry chef turned amateur sleuth) is returning to the Amour of the Seas, the boutique cruise ship where she spent a decade working in the pastry kitchen and expanding her palate at each port of call. She left the ship and her husband Carlos to return to her hometown of Ashland, Oregon where she’s been healing her broken heart and running the family bakeshop Torte. Being back in an industrial kitchen has its perks, like the state-of-the-art equipment and a staff of dozens. However, Jules is almost immediately homesick for Torte’s bright red and teal walls and eclectic customers. To make matters worse she’s plunged into dangerous waters when she finds the body of a mysterious young woman face down in the azure swimming pool.  

Chai tea is huge here in the Pacific Northwest. Perhaps that’s due to the fact that we slog through months and months of dismal, gray, unrelenting rain. Coffee shops and tea houses throughout the region offer spicy warm chai drinks to help chase away the winter blues. There’s nothing better than curling up with a mug of chai tea in front of roaring fire and watching the wind and rain lash outside. When I was working on A Crime of Passion Fruit, which is set in the azure waters of the Caribbean under sun-drenched skies, the sky here in Portland was unleashing a river of rain. I was sipping a hot chai tea latte with hints of cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves and trying to image—better yet—remember what it felt like to have the sun warm your skin. One of the best things about writing is stretching your creativity, but admittedly I was water-logged and starting to wonder if that big, beautiful orange ball that sometimes graces Portland’s skies would ever reappear. I was also on deadline which meant that in addition to putting the finishing touches on the book I needed to whip up a batch of tropical recipes that would have readers imagining themselves on a white sandy beach sipping a fruity cocktail. That’s when inspiration struck. I was buried under piles of blankets, drinking a chai and dreaming about a Mai Tai. Why not mash them up into a Mai Chai? Hence the drink was born. 

In the book, Jules and her lead barista serve up their cold, fruity concoction for breakfast sans alcohol, but I suggest that if you’re in the mood for a touch of Northwest flavor with hints of the tropics that you splash it up with a shot of Caribbean rum. Cheers! (look - the drink is right there on the cover.) 



Ingredients:
Chai Tea mix (Andy uses Oregon Chai, but any black tea blend will work)
Coconut milk
2 tablespoons pineapple juice
2 tablespoons orange juice
½ of a fresh lime
A splash of almond extract 
1 teaspoon of grenadine syrup

Directions:
Mix the juices and grenadine syrup in the bottom of a clear glass. Add milk and chai. Stir. Add ice and finish with a slice of pineapple, an orange rind swirl, a maraschino cherry, and a tropical drink umbrella. 

*If you’re feeling extra fruity, add a splash (or shot) of Caribbean rum! 



Ellie is here courtesy of great escapes virtual book tours. 

Here are the other stops on the tour:

TOUR PARTICIPANTS
June 27 – A Cozy Experience – REVIEW, INTERVIEW
June 27 – Lisa Ks Book Reviews – REVIEW, CHARACTER INTERVIEW
June 28 – Back Porchervations – REVIEW
June 28 – Books, Dreams, Life  – SPOTLIGHT
June 28 – Books Direct – GUEST POST
June 29 – Bookworm Cafe – REVIEW, INTERVIEW
June 29 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – REVIEW, GUEST POST
June 30 – That’s What She’s Reading – REVIEW
June 30 – Mystery Playground – Drinks and Reads
July 1 – Babs Book Bistro – REVIEW
July 1 – A Cozy Girl Reads and Writes – REVIEW
July 1 – The Power of Words – REVIEW
July 2 – Laura’s Interests – REVIEW
July 2 – Cozy Up With Kathy – CHARACTER GUEST POST
July 3 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
July 3 – My Reading Journeys – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
July 3 – Celebrating Authors – INTERVIEW
July 5 – Sleuth Cafe – SPOTLIGHT
July 6 – Classy Cheapskate – REVIEW
July 6 – Mystery Thrillers and Romantic Suspense Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST
July 7 – Bibliophile Reviews – REVIEW, GUEST POST  
July 7 – A Blue Million Books – INTERVIEW
July 8 – Melina’s Book Blog – REVIEW
July 8 – StoreyBook Reviews – CHARACTER GUEST POST
July 8 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – SPOTLIGHT
July 9 – A Holland Reads – SPOTLIGHT
July 10 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – REVIEW
July 10 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
July 11 – Girl with Book Lungs – REVIEW
July 11 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST

You can find Ellie on Twitter @BackshopMystery and Mystery Playground @MysteryPlaygrnd






Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Loch Ness on Acorn


We caught the first episode of Loch Ness a new mini-series on Acorn with six episodes. The show stars Laura Fraser (Breaking Bad, The Missing) and Siobhan Finneran (Happy Valley, Downton Abbey) and we really enjoyed it. The show starts when some kids play a joke and fake a freshly dead Loch Ness monster with bones and entrails. The problem is that someone put a human heart in with their practical joke. 

Relationships are complicated in this little village with a very famous monster. So far it's more mystery than fantasy. 

Here's the trailer for the show:



Acorn offers a free trial series so you can check it out. It runs on Mondays but Acorn lets you catch up on everything. They have lots of other mystery programs as well. 

Tuesday, June 27, 2017

Hallmark Mysteries Channel: Murder, She Baked Mysteries




Kerry Hammond is continuing her highlight of the Hallmark Movies and Mysteries Channel today with the Murder, She Baked mystery series.

The Murder, She Baked series is one of my favorites in the Hallmark Mysteries lineup and is based on the books and characters created by Joanne Fluke. Hannah Swenson (played by Alison Sweeney) is the owner of The Cookie Jar, a bakery and coffee shop in the fictional Eden Lake, Minnesota (Lake Eden in the books). She’s torn between two love interests: police officer Mike Kingston and local dentist Norman Rhodes. Her mother is in camp Norman but her sister Andrea, whose husband is also a police officer, is constantly cheering for Mike.


Much like Jessica Fletcher’s small town of Cabot Cove, Eden Lake has its fair share of murders and Hannah and her group of family and friends are always in the thick of it. These movies are a lot of fun to watch. The supporting characters can be just as important as the leading ones and in this series, they are played by great actors. The series follows the books pretty closely, but you’ll have to get used to the fact that physically Hannah doesn’t resemble her written counterpart. She’s not a plump with unruley hair, she’s a thin blond who probably doesn’t sample many of the great desserts her store sells. But Sweeney’s portrayal really does the character justice, so it’s easy to overlook a few changes in appearance.


Joanne Fluke has 21 books in the Hannah Swenson series, so if you love the stories there are plenty more you can read. Hannah eventually makes a decision between her love interests, but you’ll have to read and watch to see which of the men she chooses. The books are entertaining and light mysteries without a lot of sex or violence—but don’t worry, there is always a murder or two to solve. The books also come with great recipes for the desserts that Hannah bakes in each one.

See a review of the Aurora Teagarden mystery series and The Flower Shop mystery series on Mystery Playground.


Monday, June 26, 2017

Matching Mysteries with Pizza


Pizza and mystery novels, what could be better? Deborah Lacy and Kerry Hammond picked four mysteries that go great with pizza and all of them mention pizza in the books. 

The first mystery is Janet Evanovich's Finger Lickin' Fifteen. The story here is about a BBQ cook-off that goes wrong. All of the Stephanie Plum books talk about food frequently, but this one talks about food almost every chapter, so you'll want to have food handy as you read. If you've never picked up a Stephanie Plum novel, go for One For the Money and work your way through. 

The next book is Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter by Blaize Clement. This is the first in a series featuring Dixie Hemingway, ex-police deputy turned pet sitter in Siesta Key, Florida. After a tragedy in her life, Dixie has reinvented herself and changed jobs, but murder follows her and she finds herself investigating a suspicious death at one of the houses where she is cat sitting. There is only time for quick meals and dinners-for-one are a common practice for Dixie. What's better than a slice of pizza during an investigation?

Linda Fairstein's Alexandra Cooper series never disappoints. Cooper is a sex crimes prosecutor in Manhattan who works closely with detectives in the NYPD. They're not just co-workers, they're friends as well, and they eat a lot of meals together. Unlike the stereotype, donuts aren't the only thing eaten by police officers. Pizza is the perfect snack, though, for when the crew is watching Jeopardy and betting on the final answer. The Kills is an excellent book to sink your teeth into. 

You might think that reading about Jeff's Lindsay's serial killer hero in Dexter by Design might put you off food in general. But a man's gotta eat and in this book Dexter is trying his best to play the role of husband and father. Cookouts with the kids might fool some people, but Dexter needs to be careful when his Dark Passenger comes out to play.

Sunday, June 25, 2017

Cocktails with Cathy Ace


All summer long we'll be re-capping some of our favorite Mystery Playground Drinks with Reads posts every Sunday. We thought we'd start with our most frequent contributor, Cathy Ace. She has done posts for both her Cait Morgan and her WISE Enquiries series. Today we're taking you through her Cait Morgan series posts. 



The Corpse with the Emerald Thumb with Lime Margaritas.


The Corpse with the Diamond Hand and the Mai Tai.


The Corpse with the Garnet Face and the Holland Gin Cocktail.


The Corpse with the Sapphire Eyes and Bombay Sapphire Gin. 


The Corpse with the Platinum Hair and the TsarTini.


The Corpse with the Ruby Lips and a Champagne Cocktail. 

Come back next Sunday for more vintage Drinks with Reads. 



Saturday, June 24, 2017

Crime Scene Sisters



One of our favorite Etsy shops is from Kim Hammond and it's called the Crime Scene Sisters. It has witty and fun mystery themed merchandise, like the Sherlock tote above and the Poirot blanket below




I also love these pocket mirrors made from vintage Clue games cards



They add new items regularly, so check back often. 

Friday, June 23, 2017

Dark Moon Coffee and Murder Go Round


Carol Perry is visiting today to take us on a ride on a merry go round, for her latest in the Witch City cozy mysteries, Murder Go Round. With all of that spinning, Carol has treated us to a caffeinated beverage with a bit of a kick.  

Murder Go Round is the fourth book in the Witch City Mystery series (Kensington Publishers.) In this one Lee Barrett agrees to attend a storage locker auction with her librarian Aunt Ibby—even though she suspects the forgotten rooms will yield more junk than treasure. But the two, with one lucky bid, uncover a trove of wonderful curiosities, including a stunning carousel horse with gentle eyes and fading paint After Lee leaves the fairground relic at a local repair shop for some cosmetic work, another of the dusty treasures, a Russian silver samovar, awakens Lee’s psychic abilities and shows her visions of murder.  
With her detective boyfriend Pete Mondello, and with the aid of her wise ginger cat O’Ryan, Lee follows a trail of deception and death as intricate as the antique nested matryoshka dolls she found in the storage locker. Mystery Scene magazine says “Murder Go Round is entertaining fare, replete with compelling characters and a unique plot.”
* * * *
When friends drop by, Lee and Pete like to make a big ice cold pitcher full of Dark Moons. Readers of the Witch City Mystery series know how much Lee and Pete love their coffee and a Dark Moon is a heavily caffeine-laced version of that old New England favorite, Rum and Coke! The recipe will serve eight.
1 ½ cups of cold brew coffee
½ cup Tia Maria
½ cup spiced rum
1 12oz. bottle of Coke
½ cup heavy cream


Combine coffee, Tia Maria (or coffee liquor of your choice) rum and coke in a pitcher. Pour over ice in eight glasses. Top with a dash of heavy cream in each glass.


Thursday, June 22, 2017

BookBites Notecards




Lorraine Masonheimer is here today to show us how to make a set of book themed notecards she calls NoteBites.

CONCEPT: Add some flair to your communications with whimsical cards called NoteBites. Blank cards that express everything from thanks to hello to keep in touch. This set of 6 sends a fun, quirky, mystery lover message to the people in your life. The colorful high energy background is a great setting for the edgy, offbeat characters and the humorous sentiment takes a bite out of the corner of each card.

NOTE: These cards have some of the same supplies and steps. The steps listed below begin with the Card Base (Step One), which is the same for all six cards. They end with Assembly and Interior Design (Steps Three and Four), also the same for all six cards. In between are the steps for the front designs of each card (Step Two). You can make one or all of the cards using the instructions below.

Supplies for All Cards:
8½” x 11” white cardstock
Color coordinated papers (one festive, one stripe and one dot pattern)
6½” square envelope
3 enamel dot embellishments
Glue dots
Pop-up circles
Markers
Trim
ColorBox Chalk charcoal and black ink pads
Scissors
X-acto blade


Step One: Card Base for All Cards
Cut an 8½” x 11” white cardstock to 5½” x 11” and fold in half for a 5½” x 5½” card base. Cut the large patterned festive paper to 5½” square, the stripe and dot paper to ¼” x 6”. Draw and cut a bite about 2” square in the upper right corner of the festive paper.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: A Book ‘Tude Card
This card highlights a mystery book lover with a serious ‘tude.


Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Marsha6209, Tools Cube 6145, and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character and book onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “Do I look” on one line, “like I read” on the second line and “westerns?” on the third. This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut the words into a 2 ½” square and apply the splatter stamp with charcoal ink.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: Last Word Card
This card highlights what it is like when one is disappointed in how a book ends. The scissors have the last word.

Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Peggy 6067 and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “I didn’t like the” on one line, “book’s ending but” on the second line and “my scissors did” on the third. This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut the words into a 2 ½” square and apply the splatter stamp with charcoal ink.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: Thriller Freak Card
This card highlights the love/hate attraction we have to thrillers that leave us wondering—is the front door locked?

Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Twinkie 6103, Tools Cube 6145 and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character and book onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “Havin’ a thriller” on one line, “freak out…did I” on the second line and “lock the door?” on the third. This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut the words into a 2 ½” square and apply the splatter stamp with charcoal ink.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: Got Mysteries Card
This card is a simple hello from one mystery lover to another.


Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Weasel 6115 and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “Got Mysteries?”  This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut the words into a 2 ½” square and apply the splatter stamp with charcoal ink.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: Book State of Mind Card
This card highlights what it’s like to be in a book state of mind.


Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Cranium 6221, blah blah blah 6001 and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. If desired, punch a small round hole to hinge the brain and slip brad through the hole. Otherwise, glue the hinge to the card. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “books” on 4 separate lines. Print, cut and glue onto the stamped 2½” square” blah blah blah” as shown. This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut two small rough circles to create the ‘bubble’ from the head to the upper right corner.


Step Two: Stamp, Color, Text and Assemble: Checked Out Card
This card highlights what it is like when one can’t wait to get our hands on a great mystery.



Additional Supplies: Stampotique’s Gonno 6203 and a splatter pattern stamp

Stamp the character onto a piece of white paper using a black ink pad. Cut out and color as shown. To create the sentiment, open a word document and type “What do you” on one line, “mean it’s” on the second line and “checked out?!” on the third. This example uses Comic Sans at 15 points on white paper. Cut the words into a 2 ½” square and apply the splatter stamp with charcoal ink. An alternative might be “Mysteries + Coffee” on one line and “Nesbo – Coffee” on a second line. (Choose your favorite author.)

Step Three: Assembly for All Cards
Glue the 5½” x 5½” festive paper to the card base. To glue the stripe paper at an angle, measure and place a small mark at 1” on the top left side, a small mark at 2½” on the bottom left corner. To place the dot paper, measure and mark ¼” from the bottom left corner and 2½” from the bottom right. Trim the edges at an angle to match the card as shown. If desired, add two strips of thin trim to add interest to the design. Apply pop up dots to the back of the character and glue slightly off center. Take the sentiment—slip and glue into the upper right corner. Adhere three dot embellishments to the bottom right corner.



Step Four: Interior and Envelope for All Cards
Use paper scraps to add interest to the inside of the card and envelope flap and start writing a note soon!

NOTE: Extra postage required for larger size.